During the last several years, we have been trying to eat and drink less plastic by seeking alternatives to plastic dishware, food storage, cookware and bakeware. Although we've been using stainless steel sippy cups and water bottles for years, a suitable alternative to the plastic child's drinking cup has long eluded me. Until a month ago, my children were almost exclusively using IKEA polypropylene cups for their drinking cups. This practice violated several of my own plastic rules, including avoiding using plastics with food (particularly liquids, which have the potential for greater leaching); avoiding using plastic children's products; and never putting plastic through the dishwasher. We always put our IKEA cups through the dishwasher, because I am just far too lazy to hand wash several plastic cups every single day.

Now the obvious solution to this quandary is a stainless steel cup. However, finding the right stainless steel cup was not so easy. The difficulty surrounds the rim: most stainless steel cups either have a curled lip, where water easily gets trapped and causes problems, or no curled lip but a rather sharp edge. I had seen a certain stainless steel cup by Sanctus Mundo for sale online, but it was so expensive! Plus, how could I be sure the rim was acceptable? Honestly, it's hard to fork over $8 for one cup if you aren't even sure you are going to like it. So I kept hoping I'd come across a cheaper alternative. I never did. Then along came the chance to try the Sanctus Mundo stainless steel cup for free! (I was sent one cup for free to review by MightyNest.) Our family tried it, and we loved it. Last week, I ordered 5 more.

It's the perfect diameter. I like the diameter of this cup much better than our IKEA cups actually. My 4-year-old can easily hold it with one hand. I always thought the IKEA ones were too fat. 8 oz. is the perfect size for a child's cup too, in my opinion.

It's the perfect weight. One of the great things about stainless steel is that it doesn't tip over at the drop of a hat like plastic does.

It has the perfect rim. As I mentioned above, it's hard to find a stainless steel cup with a user-friendly rim. Some rims curl and trap water, others are sharp enough to hurt your lip. Sanctus Mundo's cup has a tapered rim, which avoids a sharp edge without using a curled lip. Well done, Sanctus Mundo.

It keeps cold liquids cold. Perfect for milk.

It will probably last forever. My poor IKEA plastic cups are already looking rather worn after a few years of use, and I was planning to replace them soon. One of the many problems with plastic is that as it ages, it degrades, and becomes more likely to leach harmful chemicals into your food, and thus should really be replaced fairly regularly. (Putting your plastic through the dishwasher accelerates this degradation.) So, really, the stainless steel cups aren't so much more expensive after all, when you consider a lifetime of use. Once my kids have outgrown the need for unbreakable cups, these stainless steel cups will still be wonderful for daily use as well as camping, picnics, and backyard barbecues.

Mom and Dad like it too. Although I almost always use tempered glass for drinking, my husband mostly uses the kids' cups, so it's great he likes the cup too. I also like that the cup is aesthetically pleasing. Not a top concern for me, but a bonus I can appreciate.

You can purchase these cups (and numerous other safe, non-toxic products) for 10% off from MightyNest with the coupon code Friend10.

Disclosure: I was sent one free Sanctus Mundo 8 oz. cup for review by MightyNest. I am also an affiliate for MightyNest. Please read my full disclosure statement here.

Wow, to be honest I never considered all the "issues" with plastic sippy cups. And I've been searching for something for my 3 yo (other than the plastic tupperware cups that literally my mom gave me that are from when I was a kid -- they have some rockin colors). Do they have an option with a lid? Just when we are out and about, I like to have tops on the kids cups so they aren't sloshing about in the car, etc. Thanks for the coupon code too!

As far as I know, you cannot find a sippy cup that does not have a plastic lid/spout, but at least the liquid is sitting in steel.

I would love to get my hands on a lidded steel cup with straw -- I don't know of one. I did get some great steel straws (which I'll be reviewing soon), but we use them with some plastic cups and lids. I'm working on getting my son to just use the straw with the Sanctus Mundo cup (no lid), but the 2-year-old still definitely needs a lid. We use these lidded cups for smoothies mostly.

I'd prefer a steel straw, but at least the body is steel! I don't leave my kids' smoothies in the plastic cups, btw. Pour the smoothie in, drink, clean. I don't like foods or drinks to sit in plastic ever.

megwrites, I think tempered glass works depending on what your kitchen floor is. Mine is stone tile and I myself have broken plenty of tempered glass on it. With carpet or even linoleum, I imagine tempered glass would work great. Or if you are willing to always sit with your kids and supervise their breakable dish usage during meal times (I wish I were disciplined enough about meal time to make this work).

Seeing this was fantastic timing for me.My daughter is 20 mths old. We use have used our fogo for a while now and we LOVE it. We now feel that it is time for her to transition to a more regular cup.

Do you know if sanctus mundo makes a stainless steel cup with a handle with the tapered rim. I looked up http://sanctusmundo.com/products/catalogue?start=5 and they have one with a handle, but I am not sure if it is tapered or not... do you know?

MightyNest doesn't carry a handled mug, but I've seen it at Jillian's Drawers (another store I like, but am not affiliated with):http://www.jilliansdrawers.com/products/forbaby/feeding/spoonsanddishes/25inchstainlesssteelcupfromsanctusmundo

The lip looks similarly tapered, but I would just give them a call and ask them if it has the same lip as the cup/tumbler. They have really great customer service.

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